Steam Shovel

Jeff Solak got tired of building righteous Harleys for everyone else all day then riding home on his beater Shovelhead, so he decided to take his old reliable and give it the treatment. After two years and 35 large ones, Solak’s Shovel is one hot customer.

The body mods are the most noticeable deviations from stock. Solak stretched the rear fender 2 inches, stretched and widened the gas tank 6 inches in both directions, molded in the seat, built a custom oil tank, made a retractable license plate, added twin billet taillights, built a custom swing arm, and fabricated a million little brackets and gadgets. The engine was poked to 93 cubic inches and runs Branch cylinder heads, S&S cylinders, and a Shotgun exhaust. Solak was also the man behind the paint gun, spraying the wild purple, yellow, and orange hues.

Solak believes it was time and money well spent. “I was trying to make something different and unique, which I think I accomplished. And it took only two years and a lot of complaining from my friends, because I was always working on it and never riding it.” You better believe he’s puttin’ some miles on the bike now.